Colorado Teardrops announced earlier this month that it has completed a prototype version of “the world’s first camping trailer designed to extend the towing range of an electric vehicle.”
What seems like an odd product niche could answer a dilemma for some Americans on a luxury budget: While an electric vehicle might perform perfectly well in the large time of year, an annual weeklong camping trip can be a deal breaker.
As some people tried to tow with their trams—Teslas included—Can attest, real-world driving range while towing can be difficult. Expect between 60% and 75% of the normal range, and some larger touring trailers will cut the range in half.
That’s where the idea for Boulder was born, 12 feet long electric teardrop camping trailer introduced just over a year ago, appeared. With about 75 kwh of battery mounted in its lower frame area — within a few kWh of the capacity used by some popular electric crossovers like Tesla Model Y or Volkswagen ID.4—Effectively carry a spare battery pack. According to the company, it has the potential to generate a greater total range while towing than the original range of the towing EV.
Colorado Teardrops Boulder EV camping trailer
With the announcement of its prototype, Colorado Teardrops announced that they “have partnered with a major automaker to advance technology directly related to The Boulder.”
The company also confirmed that it has completed the first phase of Boulder development. A stage of development for level 2 charging has been completed, while it is currently working on a DC fast charger between the trailer and the trailer that will be the driving force to realize the idea.
For it all to work, that is, commuters will need to pull over and essentially plug the trailer into the electric vehicle, letting it quickly charge the vehicle at up to 60 kW — or potentially is higher capacity in less time, as the range company suggests 100 miles is returned in 10 minutes.
Colorado Teardrops – Boulder Electrified Tourism Trailer
As originally revealed last year, the company reckons Boulder’s dry weight will be just 1,950 lb, with a blade weight of 185 lb. It will accommodate a family of 4, including queen size mattress, bunk bed, dining area. with couches, interior climate control, and hot showers — plus a rollaway stove, possibly with an induction hob.
According to the company, Boulder retains the classic teardrop size, but in the meantime, it’s not immune to trailers that can look more like home being pulled by a larger vehicle like Ford F-150 Lightning or Rivian R1T. The two future models, the 17-foot Golden and the 27-foot Denver, don’t retain the teardrop shape, but they do have hard-shell uppers that retract into a lower shape when towed. When camping, they expand to provide 78-inch headroom. For now, it’s hinting that these models, which appear to be at the rendering/planning stage only, will offer battery packs of up to 200 kWh, which should be enough to outlast the upcoming Max pack versions of our trucks. Rivian.
Colorado Teardrops – 27-foot Denver electrified travel trailer
Like many travel trailers, you’ll need to stay in it for the lifestyle, as you can potentially buy a lot of luxury hotel nights — and more EVs — for the price. Colorado Teardrops claim at least $1,000 off, but a $10,000 upfront payment guarantees lower rates starting at $45,000. The company announced that it is accepting pre-orders for Boulder for delivery in the first half of 2023, although that already represents a pushed-forward timeline.
This isn’t the only company pursuing electrified travel trailers, and it Not the first to try the idea. Airstream shows a eStream concept earlier this year, incorporating a system developed with ZF, which will likely be available in the next few years. That system, in another trailer, achieved a real-world 240-mile range from a 218-mile-rated Audi E-Tron Sportback EPA.
Keeping a large set of car batteries unused for the rest of the year isn’t too good for the environment or stressful supply chains, so let’s just hope the company is thinking big about how this product can be. can become a part of home energy ecosystemhelp households order batteries for use during the rest of the year.
